What CES 2010 did for... gaming

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It was a pleasure to see that the show floor wasn't awash with Guitar Hero and Rock Band accessories this year at CES, with the one exception aside. The show isn't known for its services to gaming with E3 the big event of the year, but there were still a handful of quite inspired creations.

Both MSI and Dell continued the trend of laptops being the way forward in this field with the latter's Alienware brand coming up with a light version to show these things can be mobile as well. Otherwise, it was really about the game controllers with Razer coming up with some good looking motion sticks for the PC and taking first steps into the console market too.

Star of the Show: Mad Catz Cyborg RAT

PC Gamers are a very particular breed, so when they sit up and take notice of a mouse they might consider changing their trusty old Logitech G5 for, then you know it's time to listen.

The Cyborg RAT is customisable to the nth degree. The allen key adjustment means that you can fit every contour to match the palm of your hand and it comes in your choice or either wired or wireless with a 5600 dpi laser. The latter even runs with two batteries - one to use and the other to sit there and charge waiting as back up for when the first one drops out mid-deathmatch.

Each palm, thumb and little finger plate can be chosen for the finish that suits you best and you can even go for a flanged finger rest too. It just seems as if Mad Catz has thought of everything.

Future Flier: Peregrine Glove

Thirty actions in the palms of your hands, allowing you to command armies and cast spells with speed, accuracy and comfort sounds like an excellent idea to us. You might need to spend 6 days in tutorials to get the hang of the thing, but the sense of power added to all strategy and MMORPGs will doubtless be legendary. As it goes, it's more than just a concept but it's the gaming of future styles that earn the Peregrine our future flier award.

Top of the Flops: EA Controllers

We don't care who makes all this Ninten-tatt anymore. Please, just enough already with this branded plastic landfill fodder.

The Best of the Rest

It looks a little too complicated from this side of the photos, but the idea behind this guitar-controller-come-synth is that you can use it for games like Rock Band and Guitar Hero and then switch it over to midi mode and actually use the strings to start making noises which you can lay down onto tracks. The hope is that it's the tool these games have been looking for to really turn console rockers into proper musicians.

These controllers are set to revolutionise the console market by breeding an elite of those who need to be able to tailor-adjust the tension on their joysticks. Not for everyone but certainly a touch of class here.

So which was your favourite and what will you be holding out for from CES 2010? Let us know in the comments.